Rock You Like a Hurricane – Morgan Evans to Return to Roadkill Nights Looking to Defend Her Grudge Match Title, Before Doing Her Third Drag and Drive Event on Sick Michigan Miles the Very Next Day!
One year ago, at M1 Concourse in Michigan, Morgan Evans rolled into Roadkill Nights the one that most didn’t expect to win. After all, the Florida driver came in with one of the heavier entries, an ’87 Dodge D150 pick-up, and just a handful of runs from a mid-week test session.
But Morgan defied the odds, and took her Hurricane-swapped pick-up truck to the final round victory. It kicked the door open of Morgan wanting to race more, and now, Morgan and fiancé Jason Kastner prepare for a return to Roadkill Nights, as well as spending a week in Michigan on Sick Michigan Miles Presented by Driven Racing Oil.
Don’t miss our next event - Sick Michigan Miles Presented by Driven Racing Oil, coming on August 10-17th, 2025! We’ll do an entire week in the great state of Michigan, featuring over 1,000 street miles and four race tracks - PLUS a visit to Woodward Dream Cruise! Don’t miss out on your chance to join us - CLICK HERE for more info on Sick Michigan Miles - including Sick Ward and Sick Spit Detailer Show & Shine!
Despite spending her childhood years in an automotive-influenced environment, and now home-based less than a half-hour from Orlando Speed World Dragway, Morgan Evans entered 2024 with a ZERO in the column of race track passes.
But that would change for Morgan when she got the call to be part of the Dodge Direct Connection Grudge Match race last year, a part of the popular Roadkill Nights event in August. “This forced me to rip that bandage off, because Roadkill Nights has thousands of people watching, and you have to find a way to handle the pressure and focus,” said Morgan.
Looking for a canvas to installed the Direct Connection-supplied Hurricane twin-turbo 6-cylinder crate engine and 8HP75 overdrive transmission, the couple acquired the slightly-worn Dodge pick-up last April, and got it all put together where it could’ve passed for a factory install.
Following the win in Michigan (read that Sick The Mag story by CLICKING HERE), Morgan and Jason returned to Florida with just over two months to prepare for their first drag and drive event, Sick The Magazine’s Sick 66. “The combination of Route 66 and all the cool things to see, plus racing at all those different tracks, it was an epic time,” said Morgan. Sick 66 was topped off by Morgan winning the ‘Quickest 6 Cylinder’ title.
Before the excitement of experiencing Sick 66, Morgan and Jason knew they needed to do a drag and drive in their home state as well. So before they turned a tire on Sick 66, Morgan and Jason scored a coveted spot on Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive.
But unlike the Sick 66 event, where they enjoyed the trip together in the Dodge pick-up, Sick Week would find Morgan and Jason competing in separate rides.
The Hurricane-swapped Dodge pick-up truck would have Jason at the controls for his first drag and drive event as a competitor for Sick Week 2025, and he delivered a solid performance. A 10.19 average was the result of his week, with a best single pass of 10.11 at 128.96 mph on the final day at South Georgia Motorsports Park. That average earned him a top ten finish in the Sick Week Freaks class, as well as the ‘Quickest Mopar’ title.
Morgan would participate with her 1988 GMC S15 Jimmy, the first drag and drive for this LS-swapped ride. Getting a best run of 12.39 at 112 mph on day three, Morgan completed her first Sick Week satisfied, but wanting more.
Since the completion of Sick Week, Morgan’s Jimmy now sports a Magnusen supercharger atop the LS combo, and she is hoping the boosted combination returns 10-second times in the near future.
Just a few months later, Morgan got the call that she was invited back to Roadkill Nights 2025, with a chance to defend her title. “We left our summer open just in case any of this wild stuff happened,” said Morgan. “Last year, Dodge told me ‘They will probably invite you back.’”
Although all competitors in the Dodge Direct Connection Grudge Match will once again be required to use the Hurricane 6-cylinder twin-turbo crate engine and 8HP75 overdrive transmission, the 2025 rules have been opened up to allow competitors to get creative on power and modifications.
After some discussion about what changes to make to the turbocharged 6-cylinder engine, Morgan and Jason decided to make the move from twin turbos to a single Precision Turbo & Engine 68/70-millimeter turbocharger.
“The stock twins are basically maxed out,” said Jason. “The truck makes 30-32 pounds of boost. We’re going with something I’ve used before (a single turbo set-up).” To make the change, a lot of the factory plastic on the Hurricane engine was ditched, and new turbo piping was created.
The duo also made some other changes to the Dodge pick-up, adding to the existing roll bar, removing some weight, and chopping the factory wheel tubs up to add 2-3/4-inches of width to allow a bigger tire to be used.
To make use of the extra room from the bigger wheel tubs, a set of polished Keizer wheels were acquired, 15-inch x 12-inch width in the back, and a pair of Mickey Thompson ET Drag 10.5-inch width slicks to tackle the Woodward Avenue surface.
With just a few days remaining before they make the trip from Florida to Michigan, Morgan is not only preparing to defend her title at Roadkill Nights on Saturday August 9th, but also thinking about the Sick Michigan Miles Presented by Driven Racing Oil event, which starts on Sunday, August 10th.
“We’ve had a hectic year, but I’m grateful for the chance to go back,” Morgan said. “The truck has been pretty cool to have fun with this year too.”
As a bonus for Morgan, she was asked to create the winner trophy for this year’s Dodge Direct Connection Grudge Match, which she created through her Morgan’s Metals business.
“Last year I didn’t have a lot of faith in myself in racing, because of my lack of experience,” Morgan said. “In the last year, I’ve gotten a lot more confidence as I’ve raced more, and that has also helped with racing and attending more events.”
“I feel a thousand times more pressure now. Half of me is thinking ‘you already won (a trophy); it should go to somebody else.’ But at the same time, I feel like I have to prove myself. And it is a pretty cool trophy.”
Watch Morgan and Jason 2025 make upgrades to the Direct Connection Grudge Match winning pick-up below:
Can Morgan Evans make a big impression in Michigan once again with her Hurricane-swapped Dodge pick-up? Can she contend for the Quickest Mopar or Quickest 6 Cylinder title? Come join us for a week of fun and racing action, plus the Woodward Dream Cruise, as we invade Michigan for the Sick Michigan Miles Presented by Driven Racing Oil event, August 10-17th! CLICK HERE for more details!
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Sick the Magazine, 1320 Video and Morgan Evans.
If you have thoughts / feedback / ideas, please e-mail us at derek@sickthemagazine.com